ERIC Number: EJ1460491
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1053-1890
EISSN: EISSN-1573-3319
Available Date: 2024-04-22
Using Teacher Prompts to Increase Leadership Skills in Preschool Children
Cynthia F. Dicarlo1; Margaret-Mary Sulentic Dowell2; Michelle Fazio-Brunson3; Sarah W. Gauthreaux4
Child & Youth Care Forum, v54 n1 p45-65 2025
Background: Early childhood leadership leads to positive outcomes for young children, including social competence. Objective: The purpose of the present study was to examine the leadership behavior exhibited by three preschool aged children and to determine if teacher prompting could increase the frequency of leadership behaviors exhibited by preschool children. Methods: A single case research design was utilized; specifically, we employed a multiple baseline design across preschool children to measure child leadership behaviors and teacher prompting. Results: Baseline observations revealed that children engaged in Parten's original 1933 framework of "both directing and following, reciprocally directing or sharing leadership," and "directing the group" at varying levels. Using Pigors (Leadership and domination among children, 9:140-157, 1933) definition of "guidance of others toward a desired goal," "Leadership Prompting Intervention" was used to increase children's leadership behaviors. Results indicated that both teachers increased their level of leadership prompting, and all three children increased the behaviors of "directing the group." Conclusions: Teacher prompting is a low cost, low labor-intensive intervention that can be easily integrated into the early childhood classroom routine to increase children's leadership skills. This study adds to the limited research on early childhood leadership (ECL) by providing insight into how teacher prompts can influence children's leadership behavior in a specific context and setting.
Descriptors: Preschool Children, Skill Development, Student Development, Teaching Methods, Prompting, Early Childhood Education, Interpersonal Competence, Leadership Qualities, Student Behavior, Incidence, Repetition, Leadership, Laboratory Schools, Preschool Education, Student Attitudes, Preschool Teachers, Teacher Attitudes, Teacher Behavior
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Louisiana State University, School of Education, Baton Rouge, USA; 2Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, USA; 3Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, USA; 4St. Charles Parish Public Schools, Luling, USA